Improvement in loom-shuttle-box mechanisms



ETNITEE STATES i PATENT OFFICE ARIEL B. oArEoN, 0E WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

I ivlPRoy/ENIENT IN JVLoom-SHur'rLE-ox MEcHANl'sMs.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 171,989, dated January 11, 1876-; application filed Y y l November 19, 1873.

Tocllwhom'z'tmay concern:

Be it known that LAEIEL B. GAPRON, of Worcester, State of Massachusetts, have invented a Shuttle- BOX Mechanism, of which. theifollowing is aV specification My invention relates to the mechanism for changing` the position of a series of shuttleboxes in such a manneras toV bring any one offtheseries in line with the shuttle-race, so that the shuttle contained therein may bethrown through theshed, and is fully explained in the following `specification and the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l.representsa side.V elevation of `my device attached to the-side of a. loom. Fig. 2f. isa partial rear elevation of thelsame.- Fig. 3

shows a sectional view` of the oscillating gearwheelsl and the attached notched plate-wheels. Fg.'4 shows a sectional -view of theeccentrics. and pinions, and Fig. 5 represents the lifter f.

My shuttle-box mechanism is constructed] and` operated as follows: Pivoted upon the sideA of the loom AA, and in, proper position` above the main revolving shat't B, is thehanging lever C, capable of receiving an \.oscillat` ing motion when actuated by the crank-pin D moving in theslot E, which slot should be so shaped that the lever().willreceive` a movement toward the right duriu g one quarter of arevolution of the crank-pin, Vand during the next quarter revolution to remain at rest,and duringl *the third quarter `ofa revolution to mov'eback toward the left, and duringthe last Y quarter revolutionto remain at rest, or, in

other words, to receive a movement-and a dwell during alternate quarter revolutions of the crank-pin. A rod, F, connects the end` of the lever C with the carrier G, which turns upon a pivot or stud, X2, attachedto the sidev plate-wheel, J', having six notches arranged at equal distances apart about its circumference, and upon the hub of thewheel H is attached` a similar notched plate-wheel, J, as` shown in sectional view in Fig. 3. The car'v rier G consists of a radial arm, c, connected with the lever (l, and upon the opposite sidel the two radial arms c1 a2, making an. angle greater than the oscillation of thecarrier.V Connecting the arms al and a2, and projecting over the notched platewheels bar, L, with a flange, Lf; and supportedby this bar and flange, and sliding freely therein, .l are two rods or plungers, N, pressed downward byspiralsprings, and having their lower ends entering the notches in the platewheels J and J. The oscillating movement'of the carrier G is thus imparted to the gear` wheels Hand H. In Fig. l only one plungerr and spiral spring are shown, as the other is placed 'directly behind it. Pivoted to the upper ends of the plungers N are curved plates N1 N2, having slots describing an. arc of 1 sixty degrees, orequal to theoscillaton of the carrier, and also having protuberances n n on the underfsideof each end resting upon the flange, `serving as fulcra. curved slot, and `connected to the swinging arms O 0l, loosely pivoted t0 the support 03, are pins02, which are connected `with the levers P, so placed thatat timesone or both of them may be raised by any known and suita:`

ble' pattern mechanism.` The patternmechanism should be brought into proper position to actuate the levers P at each end ofthe os. cillation of the carrier G, or :while it is at rest,

and whenever the exigencies of the weaving may demand, and the pattern mechanism cause` one of the'levers P toberaised, the corre- Spending end ofthe movable arm O or O1,

with theypin in the slot of the curved platek attachedthereto, is raised, thereby` raising the. corresponding lplun ger and withdrawing, g it from the iplate-wheel,` thus breaking. the.; connection between the carrier Gf and the: gear-wheel actuated bythe plunger so raised. The `gear-wheel thus disconnected will remain i at ,rest during the next oscillation of the carrier, and whenever: either one ofntheflevers iR! areunot; so raised .by the `pattern mechanism .I and -J, is ai f number of boxes in the series.

Itwill thus be seen that the weaver, by

suitably arranging the pattern mechanism actuating the levers l?, may cause either one or both of the gear-wheels H and H to oscillate through an arc of sixty degrees at each oscillation of the carrier G, or to remain at rest.

Having secured an oscillating movement of the gear-wheels H and H optional with the weaver, such circular oscillating motion may be converted into rectilinear reciprocating motion of the rod T and the series of shuttleboxes It by. any of the various modes known to mechanics. One method devised and preferred 'by me is shown, and is as follows: Upon the stud V, fastened to the side of vthe loom, I place two pinions, X X1, gearing with the wheels H El', and one-third their size, the pinion X turning upon the stud V, and the pinion X1 turning upon the hub of pinion X.

vTo the pinion Xl is attached the eccentric Z,

and to the hub of the pinion X is'attached the eccentric Z, as shown in sectional view in Fig. 4.` For each oscillation of either one-of the gear-wheels H or H the pinion in gear therewith, and also lthe corresponding eccentric, will receive a circular motion consisting of one-half a revolution forward or backward, according to the motion of the carrier G. The pinions are so arranged with reference to the gear-.wheels that at each dwell of the gearwheels the eccentrics will stand either horizontally in front of the stud V or horizontally behind it, but never above or below it.

The eccentrics are appropriately connected with the lever b b upon the vertical arm C of a bell-crank lever, either turning upon a stud fastened to the side of the loom or attached to a rocking shaft, e, extending through the loom in any convenient position. The lever b b turns upon a pin in the vertical arm of the bell-crank lever, and has the arm b twice the length of the arm b. To the horizontal arm ot' the bell-crank lever is attached the shuttlebox rod T by means of a device hereinafter described.

-As four shuttle-boxes are as many as are ordinarily required in most kinds of fancy weaving,I will describe the operation of my shuttle-box mechanism with reference to that the proper control of the plungers N, both of the eccentrics are caused to stand directly in front of the stud V, the vertical arm of the bell-crank lever will be thrown forward, thereby'depressing the horizontalarm and lowering the rodJT, so as to bring box marked 1 of the series l in line with the shuttle-race. If, now, the eccentric connected with the long arm of the lever b b be brought back behind -the stud V, the horizontal arm of the bell-crank lever will be raised a distance equal to that between the centers of two adjacent shuttleboxes, bringing box marked 2 in the series into Whenever, by

line with the-shuttle-race. If -the eccentric connected with the long arm of the lever b b be now thrown forward, and the eccentric connected with the short arm be thrown back behind the stud V, the horizontal arm of the bell-crank lever will be .raised so as to bring box marked 3 in the series into line with the shuttle-race, and when both eccentrics are thrown back the horizontal arm of the bellcrank lever will he raised so as to bring box marked 4l in the series into line with the shuttle-race.

It will be observed that the bell-crank lever is so arranged that a lateral movement of the vertical arm, equal to the throw of the eccentrics, will impart a vertical movement to the horizontal arm equal to the distance between the centers of the highest and lowest boxes in the series. Thus, as the two eccentrics are capable of being brought into either one of the four positions described above, with reference to each other, at each oscillation of the carrier Gr, either one of the four shuttle-boxes in the series lnay be brought into line with the Shuttle-race at each oscillation of the carrier by causing the pattern mechanism to so operate upon the plungers as to cause either one or both of the eccentrics to change their position, or to remain at rest, as may be desired.v

It will be seen that in the above-described l device the gear-wheels H H havean oscillating motion, which-is communicated to the eccentrics Z Z by means of the intervening pinions X X1. The eccentrics having an equal eccentricity, and the varying movements of the shuttle-rod box being produced by the combination of the bell-crank lever and lever b b', I am thereby enabled to use a single pattern for the eccentrics ZZ', both being alike, and the eccentrics may be attached to the loom-frame by a xed stud, V.

I make the connection between the horizontal arm of the bell-crank lever and the shuttle-box rod T by means ofthe lifterf, (shown in Fig. 5,) having a pin, g,with` a beveled end, fitting a corresponding beveled incision inthe rod T, the end of which passes through the hole h. The pin g is pressed against the'rod T by a spiral spring, so that whenever a shuttle is caught in entering a box the lifter f can 1 move independently of the rod T, and thereby prevent abreakage in the moving parts of the machinery.` A link, M, unites the lifter f with the extension arm p, attached tothe end of the horizontal arm of the bell-crank lever, and rendered capable of a certain adjustment by means of the slot I, so as to permit my mechl anism to be applied to any loom without any v Achange in the length of the supporting-rod T.

With two oscillating gear-wheels, actuated raised by the mechanism and allowed to fall by their own weight, as is the case in many shuttle-box mechanisms.

I intend, when advisable, to balance the weight of a series of shuttle-boxes by any of the well-known methods, and I also intend, when desirable, to cause a bell-crank lever upon the opposite end of the loom to be actuated by the opposite end of the rocking shaft e, in such a manner as to move a series of shuttle-boxes in unison with the one just described, but having a reverse motion-that is, a motion downward while the first series move upward-in which case the weight of the two series will counterbalance each other.

The arrangement of my device will also permit a duplicate set of mechanism to be operated upon the opposite end of the loom and in connection with a second series of shuttle-l boxes; or, by the use of one or more oscillating gear-wheels and plungers in addition to those described, a series of shuttle-boxes may be operated, consisting of a greater number than four.

What I cla-im is- 1. The combination, with the carrier G and plungers N, of the gear -wheels H H and notched plate-wheels J J', as described.

2. The combination, with the carrierI G and plungers N ,'of the connected oscillating lever C, in the manner described, and operating as set forth.

'- 3. The combination, with the oscillating gearwheels H H and pinions XX1, all constructed, arranged, and operating as described, of the eccentrics Z Z', as described, and for the purposes vset forth.

4. The combination of the carrier G, plungers N, adapted to be operated by pattern mechanism, plate-wheels J J', gear-Wheels H H', pinions X Xl, and eccentrics Z Z, all arranged and operating as described, and for the purposes set forth.

ARIEL R. cAPRoN. 

